This is a very personal story. In 2008 my father had a massive stroke. Overnight, my Dad went from having an independent life, to being paralyzed on one half of his body, and unable to care for himself or act [Read more…]
My Teachers: Michael Harner
I honour Michael as one of the pioneers of the consciousness studies movement. He brought these teachings when they were still very new and unfamiliar to most modern people and he nurtured the archetypal shamanic energy in [Read more…]
Phone Support for a Father’s Dying
Petra booked a phone session with me because she knew her father was approaching his dying time. In his late 80’s, he’d been healthy up until now, but had recently begun to deteriorate. We talked about the decisions and [Read more…]
Why I Became a Death Doula
In 2010, my vigorous, healthy, active, 74-year old father had a massive stroke that left him able to converse, but not much else. As I camped out in his hospital room and tried to make sense of this terrible new reality, I had an epiphany. [Read more…]
A Home Funeral for a Grandfather
This is Kathleen Charpentier’s story about the rituals I led with her family around the death and funeral of her husband, Richard Griebel. I’m grateful to Kathleen for inviting me to be part of this journey. [Read more…]
A Euthanasia Ritual for a Beloved Dog
King was an active dog, and when he stopped running along the trails his owners knew something wasn’t right. A couple of vet appointments and a blood test confirmed acute lymphoblastic leukemia, an incurable disease. [Read more…]
A Good Death is a Ritual of Initiation
I presented a paper at the American Academy of Religion conference (in their Arts and Religion track) on the topic “A good death is a ritual of initiation for everyone involved.” Here’s a copy of the abstract and recording of the talk.
The Beauty of a Family Graveyard
All my mother’s ancestors are buried in the same small graveyard in the mountains of Southeast British Columbia. There has been a steady trickle of family members join them around that tree over the last 80 years [Read more…]
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